Ship hull construction



Nov. 22, 1955 L. B. HARRIS ET AL SHIP HULL CONSTRUCTION 5 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Jan. 2l, 1953 TTORN EY Nov. 22, 1955 L. B. HARRIS ET AL SHIP HULL CONSTRUCTION` 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 2l, 1955 INVENTORS ATTORNEY Nov. 22, 1955 L. B. HARRIS ET Al.

SHIP HULL CONSTRUCTION 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 2l 1955 INVENTORLS ATTORN EY United States Patent 2,724,358 Patented Nov. 22, 1955 SHIP HULL CONSTRUCTION Leonard Bushe Harris and Walter B. Harris, j Sunnyside, N. Y.

Application January 21, 1953, Serial No. 332,372

3 Claims. (Cl. 114-79) This invention relates to improvements in vessels, particularly to a new type of barge, composed of a plurality ofspaced apart segmental parallel hulls joined to each other `and having a watertight space between said hulls necting for their entire length the set of buoyancy compartments thereby forming watertight buoyancy bow or stern end portions which in conjunction with the buoyancy compartments between the longitudinal parallel hulls support the barge on tine water lines when the tubular sections of the barges are loaded with dry or wet cargo.

An objectof this invention is to provide a barge having improved iinewater lines or planes of flotation to minimize resistance orndrag when being towed or self pro-V pelled, loaded or empty, as compared with the blunt water lines of standard rectangular barges as shown in the accompanying drawings.

Another object of the invention is to produce a lighter,

cheaper formof barge construction capable of being built` in standardized segments at' Shipyards or` at inland metal fabrication plants and transported to any waterfront for launching after the segments have been joined together, the resulting product beinga oating cargo vessel with easier resistance to being towed or self-propelled and capable of 4being machine fabricated with a minimum of handlabor,

furnace and slab forming work.` The narrow deck and short deck beams result in a substantial part of the total saving in steel which this invention makes possible.

A lighter weight shell is also made possible due to the `well known strength of cylindrical or tubular construction as compared with rectangular forms.

Another object is to produce a multicy1indrical seg* mented construction of barge whereby the standardized segments can beindividually'built and transported from inland points to waterfrontbytrail, truck or airplane and connected together at the waterfront point of launching as complete oating vessel.

Another object is to produce a multi-cylindrical segmented composite floating self-propelled barge having a wide stern and deck on which to connect self-propelling machinery, and a` fine or acute lined bow segment approximating the standard bow shape of a ship by the addition of cut-water plates. The reasons for the toeddn sections forward are to produce in a barge the entrance lines of a standard ship and the benefits derived therefrom. The reasons for the toed-out sections aft are to provide a wide deck and a free flowing tunnel passageway for the passage of water to the propeller or propellers which are entirely above the bottom of the barge.

Further objects of this invention will appear more fully hereafter.

The preferred embodiment of our invention will be particularly described in the following specification, while the broad scope of our invention will be pointed out in the appended claims. In these specifications and drawings the following figures represent:

Figure 1 is a plan View of a blunt end barge.

Figure 2 is an outboard profile of a` blunt end barge.

Figure 3 is an end view of a blunt end barge.

Figure 4 is a plan View of a narrow end or tine-lined barge. I

Figure 5 is an outboard prole of a narrow end or tinelined barge. i

Figure 6 is an end view of a narrow end or tine-lined barge.

Figure 7 is a plan View of a ship-shape self-propelled barge.

Figure 8 is an outboard profile of a ship-shape selfpropelled barge.

Figure 9 is a bow end view of a ship-shape self-pro pelled barge.

Figure 10 is a stern end view of a ship-shape self-propelled barge.

Figure l1 is a plan view of the contour and water lines of a standard rectangular barge.

Figure l2 is an outboard profile and water lines of a standard rectangular barge.

Figure 13 is a plan View of the contour and water lines of a wide nosed barge covered by this invention.

Figure 14 is an outboard profile and water lines of a wide nosed barge covered by this invention.

Figure l5 is a plan view of the contour and water lines of a narrow nosed barge covered by this invention.

Figure 16 is an outboard profile and water lines of a narrow nosed barge covered by this invention.

Figure 17 is a plan view of the contour and Water lines of a self propelled barge covered by this invention.

Figure 18 is an outboard protile and water lines of a self-propelled barge covered by this invention.

We accomplish the foregoing by building a composite multiple cylindrical segmented plated shell construction barge as shown in Figures 1 to 18 inclusive, in which the barge contour is formed by the plating 1 of the cylinders which is formed around and attached to concentric frames 2 in the main parallel body segments 3 forming the multiple cylinder hulls'vorl segments, the multiple cylinder hulls are joined togetherby plating 1" forming the bottom of the barge contour. v

The space between the multiple cylinder hulls or segments forming a plated water tight buoyancy compartment 15 providing the necessary buoyancy to oat the loaded barge when acting in conjunction. with the water tight buoyancy end segments 3 of the barge.

In Figures 1, 3, 4 and 6 the dot-anddash lines 1 denote the contour of a standard rectangular barge in contrast to the contour 1 of the vessels covered by this invention and fully described as follows:

The end buoyancy segments 3 of this barge or floating vessel differ from standard practice in that the plating 1 is mounted on and attached to concentric frames 4 of diminishing diameters each arranged offset and spaced apart in relation to each other, equidistantly spaced on a common vertical curved axis 5, as best shown in Figures 2 and 3. The axes 5 of these individual concentric frames 4 of diminishing diameters being set-up vertically at right angles to a base line 6 to produce an end construction to the barge having a raised deck 7 at each end of the barge, as best shown in Figures 2 and 3, and a comparatively broad bow and stern and a comparatively blunt load water line 8" as shown in Figures 1 and 13. Shown also in Figure 11 is the contrasting loadwater line 8 of a standard rectangular barge of the same dimensions.

A further improvement of the foregoing is shown in Figures 4, and 6, obtained by simply setting up the same concentric offset frames 4 of diminishing diameters and turning their curved axes 5 at the time of setting up to an angular relation to the base line 6 as best shown in Figures 6, 9 and 10 wherein we have shown an angle of 45 degrees although any other angle from 1 to 90 degrees can be used to provide the desired contour of the oating vessel and still be considered as within the claims of this invention. By watertight plating the end buoyancy segments 3 of the vessel to conform with this angular set up of the frames 4 of diminishing diameters in the end buoyancy segments 3 of the barge, a barge having a at deck 7' is obtained, with narrow ends and ner acute load water lines 8', best shown by dotted lines in Figure 15, reducing the resistance of the barge to a minimum when being towed or self-propelled as further shown in Figures 15 and 16.

A further purpose of this invention is shown in Figures 7, 8, 9, 17 and 18 whereby the curved axes 5 of the concentric offset frames 4 of diminishing diameters forming the stern segment of a barge can be mounted or set up at an angle to the base line 6 outwardly or away from the center line 9 of the vessel to provide a wide deck at the stern to allow for outboard propulsion machinery to be attached on deck, and a clear run of the water to the propeller, best shown in Figures 7, 8, 10 and 17. At the same time the concentric offset frames 4 of diminishing diameters at the other end or bow segment of the barge, best shown in Figures 9, 17 and 18, to have their curved axes 5 mounted at an angle to the base line 6 inwardly or toward each other" and the center line 9 of the vessel, thereby producing the narrow or tine load water line 8" described above and shown in Figures 4 and 15 by dotted lines, permitting a plate appendage 10 to be attached to the bow segment to further produce a ship shape to the barge as shown in Figures 8, 9, 17 and 18.

A further purpose of this invention is the adaptation of this type of barge or vessel, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, for use as a multiple tank segmentally divided barge which by the use of dished bulkheads 12` at each transverse joint 13 provides individual holds 14 for variable liquid cargos of liquids or gasses under pressure, the divided tanks when joined as a composite barge providing their own floatation without a separate hull to carry the tanks.

To make additionally clear that the load water lines 8 or plane of oatation produced by barges built in accordance with our invention will cause less resistance when being towed or self-propelled a comparison is shown in Figures 1l, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17. Figure 11 represents the load water line 8 of a standard rectangular barge, whereas in Figures 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 areshown the ner load water lines 8" of the vessels covered by this invention.

A further feature of this invention and comparison to be noticed is light water lines or plane of floatation in dotted lines, showing the further reduction of resistance when the barges are being towed or self-propelled when empty.

Having now fully described our said invention and the best means we know of carrying out the same in practical effect, we claim:

1. A floating vessel made up of multiple cylinders joined together by plating to form a composite barge, the axes of said cylinders in the main body of said vessel being parallel, said cylinders spaced apart from each other, the space between said cylinders forming watertight buoyancy compartments, the bow and stern ends being formed about curved acclivitous continuations ofthe axes of said cylinders, said ends including circular frames of diminishing diameter toward the bow and stern, said frames being equidistantly spaced along said axes, plating connecting and around said frames of diminishing diameters forming watertight acclivitous horned compartments, plating connecting said acclivitous compartments forming watertight bow and stern sections of said vessel.

2. A ship having bow and stern end portions, each of said end portions having sets of circular concentric frames of successively diminishing diameters, each set of said frames having a. curved acclivitous axis, said frames of each of said sets being in spaced apart relation from each other and around said curved acclivitous axis, said acclivitous axes of said sets of frames being parallel to each other, the plating connecting and attached to each of said set of frames forming watertight buoyancy compartments, the top and bottom plating connecting for their entire length, said set of buoyancy compartments forming watertight buoyancy bow or stern end portions.

3. A ship having bow and stern end portions, each of said end portions having sets of circular concentric frames of successively diminishing diameters, cach set of said 'rames having a curved acclivitous axis, said frames of each of said sets being in spaced apart relation from each other and around said curved acclivitous axes, said acclivitous axes of said sets of frames being angular to each other, the plating connecting and attached to each of said set of frames forming watertight buoyancy cornpartments, the top and bottom plating connecting for their entire length, said set of buoyancy compartments forming watertight buoyancy bow or stern end portions, said angular arrangement of said acclivitous axes of said sets of frames allowing various shapes of said bow and said stern end portions without changing the size and shape of said sets of circular concentric frames.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 412,391 Jorgensen Oct. Y8, 1889 1,303,690 Leparmentier May 13, 1919 1,474,725 McLeod Nov. 20, 1923 1,980,998 Knight Nov. 20, 1934 2,030,881 Knight Feb. 18, 1936 2,104,053 Odenbach et al Ian. 4, 1938 2,344,619 Lake Mar. 21, 1944 2,560,153 Blount July 10, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 202,292 Great Britain May 15, 1924 

